By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Novak Djokovic battled past Arthur Rinderknech to reach the Wimbledon fourth round and equal Roger Federer’s men’s record of most singles match wins at SW19.
Djokovic could take the record outright in two days’ time when he takes on qualifier Roman Safiullin in the fourth round, the former quarter-finalist who upset 24th seed Joao Fonseca earlier in the day on No. 2 Court.
With a fourth-set tiebreak to seal the match, Djokovic clinched match point with a diving underhand volley at the net to the roars of the enthralled crowd. Both men fell flat on the grass, but it was the Serbian superstar who rose highest into round four.
“To be able to make history in this sport is a huge honour and a huge privilege,” Djokovic said in his on-court interview. “Particularly here, it’s always a been a dream childhood tournament of mine. I’m not thinking about whether it’s going to be 105 or 106, but I’m just thinking about trying to win that match on a given day.
“Today I was quite stressed out. There was more tension than usual. I knew it was going to be a very challenging match for me. I’m just happy to overcome this. I propose a matchup between me and Roger for 106!”
Djokovic is now four wins away from a record 25th Grand Slam title and becoming the oldest player in the professional era to win a singles Grand Slam title. But he knows there are many obstacles ahead, beginning with outsider Safiullin.
Meanwhile Jannik Sinner’s Wimbledon’s title defence gathered pace as the world number one swept aside American Jenson Brooksby 6-4 6-3 6-4 to enter the fourth round and reinforce his status as the man to beat at the All England Club.
“I’m very happy about the win, I’m trying to improve every day,” said Sinner, who arrived at the All England Club without a competitive match on grass courts after his shock French Open defeat in the second round.
“A small step forwards today, trying to get better. If I want to go far in this tournament, there are a couple of things that we need to work on.”
Elsewhere World No 1 Aryna Sabalenka defeated Jelena Ostapenko to book a fourth-round clash with fellow four-time major winner Naomi Osaka, who continued her increasingly impressive campaign by beating former world no.8 Daria Kasatkina 6-1 6-3.